Behind the scenes, officials with the Northeastern Ohio Chapter of the National Football Foundation made an offer to new Browns owner Jimmy Haslam. They would whisk him through a side door just before he was to appear on the stage and deliver the keynote speech for the 25th annual awards banquet that honors high school players, college coaches and others from the state, including several with Stark County ties.

But Haslam wasn’t hiding.

He wasn’t ducking for cover amid an FBI and IRS investigation into whether or not his family’s business, Pilot Flying J, committed fraud by short-changing customers of possibly hundreds of thousands of dollars in rebates.

Instead, Haslam walked through the front doors at LeCentre Banquet Facility, just like everyone else. Unlike everyone else, Haslam issued a huge apology to all Browns fans and Northeast Ohio. He wore an orange and blue tie that popped from his barrel chest and he smiled a lot.

Make no mistake. There is still a storm brewing since the FBI and IRS raided Pilot Flying J’s corporate offices in Tennessee on April 15. Embarrassing and disparaging comments his sales people made have been made public.

Haslam ended his brief keynote speech with a few words of advice for the high school seniors about to start their college careers. Among them were Minerva’s Jake Riley and Massillon’s Kyle Kempt.

Maybe Haslam needed to hear the words himself.

“Most of the lessons I learned in life came through athletics, particularly football,” Haslam said. “The great thing about football, it is the ultimate team sport. No matter what position you play, if you don’t do your job, you’re going to let the team down. That’s what life is. That’s what the business that we play in is. You’ve got to count on everyone on your team. Whether you play right guard, or you play quarterback, whether you’re the nose man or the free safety, they’re all important. Those lessons you learn on the field will go a long way toward helping you in life.”

It was Haslam first public appearance in Northeast Ohio since the NFL Draft, and it was his first public comments in the state about the investigation surrounding his business. After his speech, Haslam met with reporters, but said he could not take questions because it was a “fluid situation” and ongoing investigation.

“I apologize to the city of Cleveland, Northeast Ohio and all Browns fans, because the last thing we ever wanted to do as a new owner is detract from football and the Browns and what a great football area this is,” Haslam said. “I apologize for that. We feel badly about it. We feel comfortable we will work through the situation.”

Page 2 of 2 -
Reporters did not have an opportunity to ask Haslam whether his ownership stake in the Browns was in any jeopardy with the NFL. Haslam declined to answer even football-related questions, and apologized when a Cleveland TV reporter asked Haslam to address a statement an FBI informant made that Haslam was aware of the alleged rebate fraud at Pilot Flying J.

Haslam has met with NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell. The NFL was unaware of the federal investigation into Haslam’s business before he bought the team, Goodell said.

Haslam seems to be trying to take a hands-on approach to addressing his business problems.

“If in fact we did short-change anyone on the rebate program, we will write them a check with interest and pay them back on the spot,” Haslam said. “We have written several checks since we started the investigation.”

Haslam said he has talked with about 300 trucking companies who used to be loyal customers of Pilot Flying J. He will talk with more in the coming days and when he left the banquet, he planned to call on them as well.

“First of all, apologizing,” Haslam said of the phone calls. “Second of all, asking for a second chance, because this is not how we act and this is not how we treat people. We’re going to rebuild our reputation. We understand it will take a long time to do, but we’re big boys. We’ve been in business for 54 years, and I hope we’ll be in business for another 54 years.”

•

Stephen Perry, the president and executive director of the Pro Football Hall of Fame, was honored with one of the evening’s most prestigious awards. Perry received the Distinguished American Award. Alan Page, a Central Catholic graduate, received the award in 2004.

Massillon quarterback Kyle Kempt, who is heading to Oregon State to play quarterback, was one of the high school scholar athletes honored. Minerva’s Jake Riley, who leaves for the Air Force Academy next month, was one of the scholar athletes as well. Riley spoke on behalf of all the scholar athletes.

Mount Union’s Larry Kehres and Ohio State’s Urban Meyer received the Lee Tressel Ohio College Coach of the Year Award. Former Ohio State head coach Jim Tressel delivered those awards. Tressel and Meyer spent several minutes talking during a reception prior to the banquet.M